Coached Red-Handed by Victoria Laurie

Author:Victoria Laurie [Laurie, Victoria]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published: 2022-06-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

The next evening, I was gathered with Gilley and the DeLeons in the kitchen, having just finished washing up from dinner and talking about playing either a game of Trivial Pursuit or Pictionary, when Shepherd’s name appeared on my caller ID. I’d heard from him earlier when he called to tell me that, despite his best efforts, McMillen had gotten out on bond. Still, his passport had been confiscated so at least he wasn’t a flight risk. I wasn’t thinking Shepherd was calling with anything serious when I picked up his call with a playful, “Hello, lover. Whatcha wearing?”

“Cat,” he said, his tone all business and I immediately knew something was wrong.

“What’s happened?” I asked, my heart racing.

“It’s McMillen,” he replied. My eyes roved to the kitchen window, subconsciously bracing for some sort of sighting of the man, thinking that Shepherd had called to warn me that William was out for revenge.

“Should I lock all my doors and have everyone get upstairs?” I whispered.

“What?” he said.

“Are you calling to tell me that you’ve discovered McMillen is thinking about harming me? Or that he’s made some sort of public threat to me?”

“No,” Shepherd said. “It’s worse.”

My breath caught. What could be worse? “Tell me,” I said.

“McMillen is dead.”

My jaw dropped and immediately after registering what Shepherd had just said, I told myself I must’ve misheard. “He’s what?”

“Dead. William McMillen is dead.”

I put a hand to my mouth. “Suicide?” I asked meekly. Perhaps the guilt of killing his ex-wife was too much and he’d taken his own life.

“Nope,” Shepherd said. “He’s been murdered. I’m on my way to the scene.”

“He’s what and you’re what?” I exclaimed. None of that made sense!

“McMillen’s been shot. Execution style. Just like Scarlet.”

“What’s happening?” Gilley said, and I jumped when I realized he’d come up next to me.

Ignoring Gilley, I focused on Shepherd. “Who murdered him?”

“It sounds like Siobhan did,” Shep told me.

I gasped again.

“Who’s been murdered?” Gilley whined. “Cat, tell me!”

I waved at him and kept my focus on my conversation with Shepherd. “Well, that makes sense, doesn’t it? Scarlet made sure that McMillen wasn’t going to get a penny unless he gave up Siobhan, and that woman doesn’t strike me as the type to take that news well. I bet she killed both her sister and McMillen.”

“That’s my theory too,” he said. “Anyway, I wanted to tell you the news first before you heard it from another source, and also to let you know that I won’t be able to come over tonight like I’d planned to. I’ll be working this case all night.”

“I completely understand,” I said. “Don’t worry about tonight. We’ll find time to be together soon.”

“You know it,” he said. “Love you, babe.”

I grinned. Shepherd didn’t often tell me he loved me—he usually tried to show me and settled for implying that he did. “Love you back, Detective. Get some sleep when you can and we’ll talk later.”

After hanging up with Shepherd I filled Gilley and the DeLeons in on the news.

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